''Morenu'' (, lit. "our teacher") is a customary religious title for a

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

man with high religious education. This term has been used since the mid-14th century and has a

Talmudic The Talmud (; ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the centerpiece of Jewi ...

origin. The title is generally considered a prerequisite for fulfilling the duties of a

rabbi A rabbi (; ) is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi—known as ''semikha''—following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of t ...

. This title was placed before the name of the scholar in question. For example, the abbreviation MaHaRaL stands for Morenu ha-Rav Loew. "This title was first used in Germany, and after R. Meïr b. Baruk ha-Levi, rabbi of Vienna (1360–90), had revived the ancient custom of ordination ("

semikhah ''Semikhah'' () is the traditional term for rabbiinic ordination in Judaism. The original ''semikhah'' was the formal "transmission of authority" from Moses through the generations. This form of ''semikhah'' ceased between 360 and 425 CE. Si ...

"), every one ordained as rabbi received the degree of morenu. The first who bore this title were, according to David Gans, R. Shalom of Austria, rabbi of Wiener-Neustadt, and R. Jacob Mölln (MaHaRiL)".

References

Orthodox rabbinic roles and titles {{Rabbi-stub

See also

References